


When Chronos Dreams

by Helig



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: ( other generals tba ), Exile Timeline, Family Angst, Friendship, Gen, Lotor-centric, Not Beta Read, Not Time Travel, Past Child Abuse, Political Alliances, Time Shenanigans, War
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-28
Updated: 2017-08-28
Packaged: 2018-12-21 03:35:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,153
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11935482
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Helig/pseuds/Helig
Summary: An allied planet has a peculiar acquisition request that Prince Lotor chooses to fulfill personally.[ On Hiatus until I learn how to write multi-chapter stuff without making my words look ugly. ]





	When Chronos Dreams

The negotiations with the Ajanta system were going nowhere. Allegedly the strongest economical state of the sector, they were unwilling to part with neither their autonomy nor their political neutrality. The Empire, to them, was still a distant threat that would merely pass them by like a solar burst caught in a planet's magnetic field.

They were wrong. The Empire was a black hole that pulled everything in with a hopeless abandon.

These people, these poor fools - they wanted nothing. They yielded nothing. Still the round table was set and in their game of words, Lotor’s increasingly more blatant warnings went unheeded. Parried with certainty befitting of a bluff. Except there was none. The system emerged out of countless conflicts unharmed insofar and the elite clung to that. They took their safety for granted.

In the game of ph’ajax that concluded the meeting, Lotor decimated his opponent with merciless brutality. He took no pleasure in it or in the ultimatum that followed the endgame.

Accept the terms of surrender or be destroyed.

He gave them two weeks. To the opposition that contracted him over the secure line, he gave a week to make a choice of their own. Even with the replacements he made over the years, the fleet could suffer idleness only for so long. There would be preparations to be made regardless of the outcome.

* * *

“ Soooo, that went well, ” with a flick of her appendage, the sly general prods. Her intonation is the tell of her worry. He should be touched and yet isn't. That is a tell, as well.

“ Three garden worlds. A unique defence system. All to be lost for nothing, ” the words flow with a clinical precision. He doesn't have to look at Ezor to feel her shift. He doesn't want to. “ Of course this is a splendid opportunity for the Nazpsad battalion. They will be thrilled. After all, proper challenges do dwindle quickly as of late. “

They make their way to the cockpit. It only takes him a few motions to set the shuttle on the return route. One of the least armed vessels there are in his fleet was to be a gesture of peace and trust, now an unnecessary risk.

“ Well, we didn't have to fight on our way out, right? ” The brightly colored hybrid drops herself into the co-pilot seat. “ C’mon, we will just give them a little scare and they will be all silky and sweet. Also, you are doing the thing. “

“ We will see, " is all he says. 

He adjusts the shields. 

“ Loootor. "

The Oort Cloud is one of the final defences of the system. It consists of a mixture of corrosive gasses and endless storms.

“ Lo-tor. “

They came in through one of the force-field channels built through it. A technological marvel in the eyes of the locals. In reality, the cloud is a trivial obstacle for the resources the imperial army possesses.

“ Lotor. ”

There is a clawed hand right in his face. The fingers wiggle a little.

He turns to her with wrinkles between his brows and a sharp reprimand ready on his tongue. A virtue often being on the receiving end. The expression on Ezor’s face stops him before it is let loose. It is not the one he has seen before.

“ What, “ is a half hearted snap.

“ You can't really help them, you know? It's not like stupid is something you can help. Or control, anyway. They do their own thing, " there is a pause he doesn't dare break. “ Even wanting reeeeally hard doesn't help it. I’d know - I tried. "

Half-galras look at the Rubicon that is soon to be crossed. The color bleeds into it from the light that flashes within. The magnitude of it dwarfs the planets that this deadly field encapsulates. Without the corridors it will become a deadly trap for its inhabitants.

When Lotor speaks it comes out as a soft whisper.

“ So did I. “

They will not be coming back.

* * *

The star that made that particular cloud was quite prolific. They find it the hard way, by dodging chunks of surprisingly numerous and conductive asteroids that were hidden in the storm. 

The Prince has to dive out to hotfix the the inertia dampeners to the sound of Ezor yelling. He doesn't even try to, with his hair being down. Still, the fact that the asteroids are  _ that _ close really does smell of wyv'erc shit. The white mess his head became is trying to strangle him the entire time.

They survive, disheveled but unscathed. One of the few beings he puts his trust sprinkles with giggles when she finally has an opportunity to check in on him. This time, her smile is contagious because he knows well that his hair is forming a perfect sphere. It keeps at it even secured hastily with a tie and the static collected on the relays is solely to blame.

“ Excellent piloting. Would you like to switch now, Ezor? ”

The complement is perfectly honest. His hand on her shoulder is not.

Zap. Yelp.

“ Ow! Don't do that! "

* * *

The screen lit up as soon as an incoming shuttle hailed the cruiser. It was Acxa’s shift on the bridge. She straightens immediately, tension pulling at her back as she asks. The formal greeting is forgotten. Lotor wonders if she noticed.

“ We were expecting you to be back in six vargas. Did something happen? ” 

“ We took a shortcut, ” Ezor chimes in, pleased in a way that would suit Kova quite nicely. A smile is still tugging at the corners of his lips, too.

“ Update the profile of the Ajanta system. I'm transferring the data now. ” 

At this distance, the exchange is almost instantaneous.

“ I have it. That's… definitely something. Damage? ” Lotor’s smile widens a meager fraction, small wrinkles nestling in the corners of us eyes. Status report of the shuttle systems was included in the data package he just sent. Ezor saves the day instead of him once again.

“ Nope! None given and none taken, ” she drawls in a lilt and tension flees Acxa’s shoulders with a sigh. He and Ezor share a discreet look before Lotor continues.

“ The cloud will be an issue for the fighters. Given what we saw, the destroyers will not have such trouble. ”

There is a pause on the other side, interrupted only by the buss of the panel’s energy fields being touched rapidly. He knows that his second in command must be already making adjustments to the simulation. 

“ We can deploy scouting drones to get a better scan ... Did they refuse the offer? "Her question is tinted with disbelief.

“ Quite stubbornly. We will gather our forces in the sector and cross the barrier. Cut their escape routes. A week long blockade will be our next bargaining chip. "

Acxa nods. Ezor hums. Their little shuttle approaches the premises of the hangar bay. The purple membrane of the containment field lets them through without any resistance.

“ Welcome back. ”

**Author's Note:**

> An introductory chapter. Because I fluffed on accident.


End file.
